


Between Brothers

by madjm



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Family, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-28
Updated: 2016-04-28
Packaged: 2018-06-05 03:43:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,600
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6687841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madjm/pseuds/madjm
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Killian never meant to fall for his brother’s girl. Modern AU. Fluffyflufffluff.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Between Brothers

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thewulf (Aloha4Ever)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aloha4Ever/gifts).



> Aloha-4-ever asked for Jones Brothers, but because I make my home in the Captain Swan dumpster, we ended up with 4500 words of silly Captain Swan fluff feat. the Joneses.

“Where the hell have you been?”

 

Killian froze at the sound of his older brother’s voice echoing through the darkened living room. Holding any position in his current intoxicated state was pretty much impossible, though, and his stumble over something on the floor led nicely into a faceplant right into the couch.

 

It was probably some sort of metaphor for the evening, if not his entire life, but thinking too deeply about anything was currently out of the question.

 

Instead, Killian laughed, shoving his forehead into the throw pillow he’d landed on. “Brother! I’m a little old for a curfew. ’S no need to wait up.”

 

He felt something — another pillow maybe — hit the back of his head. “You twit, you had a shift at the bar tonight,” Liam said. “You left me high and dry, didn’t bother to call and wouldn’t answer your damn phone. I was worried!”

 

Sighing, Killian rolled over. He felt sick, and it had nothing to do with all the alcohol he’d consumed in the past few hours and everything to do with the fact that he was the worst brother in the world. He was going to have to confess everything to Liam, and he didn’t know how to find the words. He didn’t know how to face his brother after what he’d done.

 

“I thought we were past this,” Liam said quietly. There was no anger in his voice, just disappointment, which was, as always, worse. Killian had given him a lot of cause for both in the past. His brother had dropped out of college to take custody of Killian when their mother died during his junior year of high school. Killian had been bitter and angry and had been nothing but trouble for Liam, skipping classes, getting into fights, coming home drunk if he’d come home at all. But, due mostly to the efforts of his older brother, he’d finally straightened out and even made it into college; in just a few more months he’d be the family’s first college graduate.

 

It was all thanks to Liam, who’d put off his own schooling and put his whole life on hold to be there for his ungrateful brat of a brother. He’d given Killian everything and asked for nothing but Killian’s best efforts in return.

 

And now Killian had taken even more, like the foolish, selfish bastard he was.

 

It was a little bit easier to tell him in the dark, when all he could see was the shadow of the other man in the chair across from him. It was almost like confessing his sins to an unseen priest instead of revealing his betrayal to his beloved brother.

 

“I kissed her,” he said. “I’m sorry, I didn’t — I didn’t mean for it to happen, but I’ve … I think I might be falling for her and I tried not to. I wouldn’t have even told you, I would have kept it to myself, but brother, she … she was the one, she kissed _me_.”

 

Kissed seemed like a mild term for what he’d shared with the blonde beauty. He’d tried so hard to stay away from her, and running into her in the back shelves on the third floor of the library seemed … it seemed like fate or a message from the universe or something. She’d said “hi,” her voice low and husky, and he thought he’d parroted it back at her, and then she’d grabbed the lapels of his jacket and pulled him to her mouth for the single most passionate kiss he’d ever experienced.

 

With his brother’s girlfriend.

 

There was a long pause. “Who, Kill? Who did you kiss?”

 

“Your girl,” Killian said, miserably. “I kissed Elsa.”

 

* * *

 

He first saw her on a Tuesday. He remembered that for sure because Professor Gold always gave his students an inhuman amount of reading to do between his Tuesday and Thursday classes. That’s why Killian had his head buried in a book when he was supposed to be working at the information desk. There were literally not enough hours in the day to finish all the reading, but he’d be damned if he let Gold get the best of him. Belle, being the utter sweetheart that she was, always offered to take the main desk, which was much busier, leaving him to deal with the few questions that the computerized card catalog couldn’t answer.

 

“Whose ass do I have to kick to get some service around here?”

 

Startled, Killian looked up to see a beautiful blonde glaring at him. Her companion, an equally lovely brunette with short hair, frowned and nudged her friend. 

 

“Hush! It’s the library,” she scolded softly.

 

“Fine,” the blonde whispered harshly. “Whose ass do I have to kick —”

 

“I’ll be happy to provide any _service_ you require,” Killian interrupted before he could think better of it. Mentally, he kicked himself. This wasn’t a busy Friday night working at his brother’s bar, it was the university library; what would be considered harmless flirting at the Jolly Roger could get him, at best, on Ms. Blue’s shit list at the library if a student complained. At worst, he could lose his job entirely.

 

Luckily, the blonde didn’t seem offended. She huffed out a laugh, looking him over like he was a perp in a lineup. “I’m sure you would. Unfortunately for you, _Killian,”_ she said as her eyes lingered on his name tag, “it’s my friend who needs the help.”

 

The brunette shook her head, holding out a slip of paper. “I’m looking for this book. The computer says it’s here, but I can’t find it on the shelf. Please, please tell me you have it somewhere? I’ll give you anything, my first-born child, _anything_ if you’ve got it.”

 

Killian shoved his book to the side and checked his own computer terminal. Nodding, he moved to the cart full of newly returned books, quickly finding what she was looking for.

 

“You’re in luck,” he said, handing it over. “Returned but not yet shelved. The lady Belle will be happy to check you out over at the circulation desk, no children — first-born or not — required.”

 

“Oh, thank you so much!” the brunette said in a loud whisper, happily clutching the volume to her chest. “I can finally finish this paper.”

 

“Pleased I could assist,” he said, dragging his history book back in front of him. He couldn’t stop himself from smirking at the blonde, deciding to risk a little flirtation. “If you’re sure there’s nothing I could _do_ for you?”

 

Shaking her head, she gestured at the book. “Is that for Robert Gold’s class?”

 

“Sadly, it is.”

 

“Good luck,” she said drily. “The guy’s pure evil.”

 

“Believe me, darling, that hasn’t escaped my notice. But one can’t just let evil win, right?”

 

She shrugged. “Speak for yourself. I transferred over to Professor Merlin’s class instead. Got an A with no problem.”

 

Hitching her bag over her shoulder, she turned to leave.

 

“You know my name,” he said, flicking his name tag. “Do I get to know yours?”

 

She shrugged again. “What fun would that be?”

 

He grinned as she walked away, eyes tracing the fancy letter E adorning the side of her bag.

 

* * *

He saw her fairly often after that, sometimes with her friend but usually alone. She’d stake out a popular spot on the third floor — near a working electrical plug and not far from the bathrooms — pull out a giant cup from the campus coffeeshop, plug in her laptop, slip in her earbuds and spend an hour or two studying.

 

He’d spent a couple days hovering nearby — in a completely non-creepy-stalker way — trying to figure out how to approach her before Ms. Blue gave him the perfect opening.

 

The head librarian didn’t often deign to appear outside of her office, but when she did it was usually to look for infractions by library employees or students. And one of her very biggest rules was No Eating Or Drinking In The Library.

 

As soon as he saw Blue making the rounds, Killian ducked up stairs and headed right for the blonde’s table. She looked up, frowning, when he waved his hand in front of her.

 

“Give me your coffee,” he whispered.

 

“Um. No?”

 

“Trust me, love. The head librarian will kick you out if she finds it,” he hissed.

 

After a moment, she slid the cup over to him, and he unlocked a storage cabinet at the end of an aisle, hiding the cup inside. Grabbing a book at random, he returned back downstairs just in time for Blue to glare at him for leaving his post.

 

“Student was looking for this,” he explained, waving the book.

 

The librarian huffed, moving on to inspect another area of the library. Once she was safely gone, he slipped back upstairs and retrieved the girl’s coffee.

 

“Thanks,” she said. “You weren’t kidding, were you? She booted a guy out for eating Funyuns. Which, fair enough. But she doesn’t mess around.”

 

“You’re quite welcome … Elizabeth,” he tried.

 

“What?”

 

He nodded at her bag. “The E? Stands for Elise?”

 

She shook her head, gracing him with a smile. “Nope. Nice try, though.”

 

Before he could try another name, she slipped her earbuds back in, clearly dismissing him.

 

But the smile was worth everything.

 

* * *

Over the next few weeks, he tried out a number of names. Ella. Emily. Eva. Erin. Evelyn. It finally occurred to him that the E might actually be her last initial, but she seemed to be more amused every time he tried — and failed — to guess, so he kept at it.

 

He stopped to talk to her almost daily, learning a lot about her, aside from her name. The drink she always smuggled in was not coffee but hot chocolate, which she took with cinnamon. She had eclectic taste in music, listening to everything from ’80s hair metal bands to Taylor Swift to some old-school rap and R&B, as well as classical and musical scores from movies. 

 

She was smart, quick-witted and sarcastic, and her friends seemed to mean the world to her. She was a social work major, and he learned from that conversation that she was an orphan who was adopted when she was 13. Her dark-haired friend, who cheerfully told him that her name was Mary Margaret, was dating Emma’s adoptive brother David. He quite liked Mary Margaret, and that feeling was only enhanced when he overheard her needling the blonde about Killian. 

 

“What’s with the guessing game? You can’t just tell him your name?” she asked.

 

“I would, if he asked again.”

 

“But he won’t?”

 

“He’s stubborn.”

 

“Well, you have that in common.” Then, “It’s the weirdest form of flirting I’ve ever seen.”

 

“It’s not — We’re just … it’s just a thing we do, that’s all.”

 

“A _foreplay_ thing.”

 

“Don’t you have some reading to do?”

 

Mary Margaret had laughed, and he’d had to wait a good 10 minutes in the back room before he could continue to their table, so they wouldn’t know he’d overheard.

 

* * *

He knew it seemed strange, but it really was an accident when he ran into her at the coffee shop on campus. She was getting hot chocolate and laughing with the girl at the counter, a long-haired brunette with red streaks in her hair. Fittingly, her name tag read “Ruby.”

 

After he’d ordered and paid, he nodded at the blonde. “Good morning, Eleanor.”

 

She just shook her head with a laugh.

 

“Ohhhhhh,” Ruby said, pausing at writing his name on his cup. “You’re library guy. Nice to finally meet you.”

 

“Library guy,” he repeated, grinning. “Talk about me often, eh, Eliza?”

 

“Strike two,” Ruby said. “If you really want to know what it is, I can be bribed. Cash only, though.”

 

“That’s a lovely offer,” he said, glancing at his watch. He had approximately 12 minutes to make it to class. “But what fun would that be? See you later, ladies.”

 

He headed to the end of the counter to wait for his order, laughing when he heard her call, “It’s more like strike 20!” after him.

 

* * *

It was a Friday night at the bar when it all came crashing down on him.

 

Liam had been acting strange all week, surprisingly cheerful, not even losing his temper when someone backed into the side of his beloved truck and didn’t even leave a note. 

 

“Nobody was hurt,” he’d said, shrugging. “It’ll fix easily enough.”

 

When Killian fumbled and nearly dropped a case of Guinness bottles early in the evening, all he got was a clap on the arm and a “careful, little brother” before Liam headed to the back. 

 

Whistling. 

 

“What is going on with you?” Killian asked, when he returned. “Have you been replaced by a pod person? Had a traumatic brain injury? Or … _oh_ , you finally got laid, then? Who was she? She must be really good for you to be in such a fine mood.”

 

This got a frown out of Liam, who snapped at him with a hand towel. “Watch it, Killian, don’t be disrespectful.”

 

Killian shrugged, turning to wipe down the bar. “It’s worked for me for more than 20 years, why change now?”

 

He yelped as the towel connected with his hip, hard. 

 

“I like this girl, Killian.”

 

Oh. 

 

He turned to his brother, who looked uncharacteristically nervous. “Is she — are you _dating_ her?” His brother hadn’t been in a serious relationship since Killian had been in high school. There had been a girl in college, but that had ended when Liam had returned home to take care of him.

 

Yet another thing Liam had given up for him.

 

His brother nodded, a smile tugging at the edges of his mouth. “It’s been going on for a while now. I haven’t talked about it because I didn’t know if it would … be anything. But she’s coming in later tonight; I want you to meet her.”

 

“What’s she like?”

 

“Her name’s Elsa. She goes to your university, a year behind you. She’s bloody brilliant and —” Liam sighed as Jefferson, the other bartender, waved him over. “You’ll meet her tonight, and later I’ll tell you everything.”

 

Killian grinned, flipping a hand towel onto his shoulder. He could hardly wait to meet the girl who put a spring in his brother’s step. It had been too long since he’d seen Liam so happy.

 

He _had_ to wait, though, and there was such a crush of people that he’d nearly forgotten about her by the time he heard his brother in his ear near the end of the night. 

 

“Corner table. Stop by and say hi when you get a chance.”

 

It was nearly closing time, and business was slowing. The regulars were on their way out, and the herd of college students was considerably thinned as they paired off to find other, more private, entertainment. Killian still had a small crowd around his end of the bar; he always managed to attract a few admirers in an evening at work, and tonight had included not one but two bachelorette parties. Some of the ladies lingered, flirting with him. He flirted back a little bit, but the truth was that no woman could hold his interest since he’d started talking to the mysterious E.

 

He was admittedly a bit tempted by the two brunettes, roommates they said, who were tag-team flirting with him. Neither one had had more than a couple beers, so he didn’t feel that he’d be taking advantage of them. They were both far more his usual type than the blonde from the library, as well as being very willing to offer him their names, as well as anything else he might be interested in.

 

He was leaning on the bar, chatting with them, when he spotted E. She was sitting at a table, laughing, a wide smile on her face, bigger than he’d ever seen. His heart began to beat faster at the sight, and the two brunettes might as well have just disappeared.

 

Swallowing hard, he pushed himself away from the bar, searching his brain for an E name he hadn’t tried yet. Stepping in that direction, he stopped short, recognizing the person sitting across from his library crush.

 

Liam.

 

Liam and … Elsa.

 

Killian moved down to the opposite end of the bar, away from the two of them. He was being an idiot and an ass, he knew, but he couldn’t bear to be introduced to his brother’s girlfriend, knowing that he was half in love with her already.

 

He knew he couldn’t avoid “meeting” her forever, but he couldn’t face them until he could get himself under control, push away the feelings he’d been developing for her. His feelings couldn’t be that real; after all, he hadn’t even known her name.

 

He told Jeff that he was feeling sick, and asked him to cover closing, promising to return the favor the following night. He sent a quick text to Liam after he was safely outside, saying he hated to miss meeting Elsa, but he’d meet her next time.

 

He could, and would, swallow his feelings for the sake of his brother.

 

* * *

He’d tried, after that, to avoid seeing her in the library. 

 

Well, he’d tried a little bit.

 

If she was there, he couldn’t help but try to be closer to her. Even if he didn’t stop to talk for long, he had to say hello. He probably should have mentioned Liam to her, but he couldn’t bring himself; he didn’t want to see her face when she talked about her relationship with his brother. He thought about bringing their game to an end, just “guessing” Elsa as her name, but something held him back.

 

He didn’t want it to be real.

 

And then one minute, he was shelving books and the next he was kissing her. It was simultaneously the best and worst moment of his life, and when they broke apart, both breathing heavily, all he wanted to do was push her back against the shelf and kiss her again.

 

So instead, he ran. He mumbled something about Ms. Blue, and made a run for it. He used his second fake sick excuse in a week to beg off work and made his way to the closest bar, a shithole called The White Rabbit, and proceeded to drink until he could barely stand.

 

And then home to face his brother, like the traitorous bastard he was.

 

* * *

He woke to the ear-splitting sound of AC/DC at top volume, grabbing his head and groaning before falling right off the couch.

 

“Bloody hell,” he groaned. He knew damn well what was going on, as this was Liam’s favorite method of rousing him when he’d come home drunk as a punk-ass high school student. Closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths, he prayed that his stomach would settle.

 

“Rise and shine, little brother,” Liam called, much, much louder than was actually necessary. That he could even be heard over the music meant he was yelling at the top of his lungs.

 

Liam stepped closer, then leaned down to yell in his ear. “You have 10 minutes to shower and change before we leave!”

 

He muttered something, not even sure what he was saying himself, and sighed in relief when the music dropped to something slightly less painful. His relief was very short-lived, however.

 

“Make that nine minutes, Killian,” Liam said. “We leave in nine minutes and counting.”

 

“Leave where?” he mumbled into the carpet.

 

“We’re meeting Elsa for breakfast,” his brother said cheerfully. “It’s time you two were formally introduced. I’ll not stand for any secrets between us.”

 

Killian could only manage a groan.

 

“You’re going with me if I have to carry your worthless carcass to the truck myself,” Liam said firmly. “But unless you want Elsa to see you at your most pathetic, you should use the next eight minutes wisely.”

 

* * *

 

Liam gave him fifteen minutes, in fact, and he managed a fast shower and a few gulps of coffee before digging out some sunglasses and stumbling out of the house.

 

He thought it was possible that he might die, but given his luck of late, he’d manage to live just long enough to have to watch his brother and Elsa making heart eyes at each other over pancakes before his misery could finally end. And, of course, they were going to Granny’s Diner, where he was a regular. Bloody fantastic that everyone he knew would be able to witness his humiliation. 

 

He thought he was prepared, but walking into the diner and seeing her sitting there was like a punch to the gut. And considering how unstable his stomach already felt, the impact was even worse.

 

A small part of him had still hoped he’d been wrong.

 

She looked beautiful, wearing a white and red flowered top, with her hair twisted into a lovely braided crown on her head. She was biting her bottom lip and staring down at her phone, and he couldn’t make himself take one step closer.

 

Liam had no such hesitation. With a snort, he shoved Killian toward the table, calling to her in an unnecessarily loud voice.

 

“Elsa! I believe you know my brother, Killian.”

 

She dropped her phone on the table and looked up at them, eyes wide.

 

“I …”

 

“He’s told me everything,” Liam said, and Killian couldn’t quite decipher his tone of voice. He didn’t sound angry, exactly, but something was definitely off. “How you kissed him at the library. How could you do that to me?”

 

Her eyes jumped back and forth from one brother to the other as she got slowly to her feet. “I can explain,” she said. Between the pounding of his heart and the hammering in his head, her voice sounded like it was coming from very far away. “Liam … I … Look, I’m sorry, I can’t do this. Look at him!”

 

“I agree!” a voice came from behind him, and Killian turned to see a tall blonde coming to stand beside his brother. “Liam, it’s too mean.”

 

“Will someone tell me what in blazes is going on?” Killian growled. His head hurt, he felt sick to his stomach and he was watching his worst nightmare take place in front of him. A man can only take so much.

 

The other blonde laid a hand gently on his arm. “Killian, I’m Elsa Queen. It’s a pleasure to finally meet you.”

 

As her words sank in, he slowly turned back to the woman at the table, holding his breath until she spoke.

 

She smiled and held out a hand. “I’m Emma. Emma Nolan. Elsa’s my roommate.”

 

“Emma,” he whispered. “Didn’t I guess ‘Emma’?”

 

She shook her head. “Close a few times, but nope.”

 

He turned to glare at his brother. “What were you playing at, Liam?”

 

“You’re a bloody idiot, Killian. If you’d simply come over to meet Elsa — and her good friend — the other night as I’d asked, you wouldn’t have made such a fool of yourself. Or made me worry. I asked the girls to help me get back at you.”

 

Emma shrugged, smiling sheepishly. “We were going to make a whole scene. It seemed funny when he asked, but you look like hell. I felt too bad to go through with it.”

 

“He doesn’t look _that_ bad,” Elsa said gently, shooting a frown at her friend. “But maybe some coffee is in order?”

 

She steered him to the seat across from his library crush — Emma, her name was Emma — and told him she was kidnapping his brother for the rest of the morning.

 

“I hope we can speak when you’re feeling better, Killian,” she said.

 

“I’d really like that,” he said gratefully. He appreciated her kindness, and getting to know her a bit might help him come up with a suitable revenge for his brother’s prank.

 

“Little brother, I —“

 

“Sod off,” Killian said, sliding into the booth. “We’ll talk later.”

 

He ducked away when Liam reached out and mussed his hair like he’d done when they were boys, but truthfully he didn’t mind. It was hard to hang on to too much anger when the probable woman of his dreams was sitting across from him. And was _not_ dating his older brother.

 

She tilted her head and stared at him a moment. “Elsa was just being nice, you know. You do look like hell. How much did you drink last night?”

 

“All the alcohol,” he said. “I drank it all.”

 

She smiled a little, holding out a menu. “I find that a nice greasy breakfast helps get me past a nasty hangover.”

 

“Thanks, love. _Emma_.” He took the menu but didn’t look away from her.

 

“Was it Gold’s class?” she asked, eyes dropping to her own menu. Interestingly, she was blushing a little. 

 

“Was what Gold’s class?”

 

“That drove you to drink ‘all the alcohol’?”

 

He laughed. “Not at all. Someone wiser than I advised me to transfer to Merlin’s class. No, in fact, it was a lass that drove me to drink. I thought she was my brother’s girl, but she gave me the best kiss of my life. I’ve never been more conflicted in my life.”

 

She finally raised her eyes, looking almost shy. “Well, that sounds like a good reason to drink. I hope everything worked out in the end?”

 

“Well,” he said. “I guess that depends on if you’re going to be as stubborn about giving me your number as you were about giving me your name.”

 

Emma smiled, holding out a hand for his phone. Once he gave it to her, she programmed in her number and handed it back. 

 

“For the sake of your liver,” she said.

 

* * *

Their breakfast lasted nearly until lunchtime, and Emma gave him a ride home along with the promise of a date the following evening.

 

He was whistling when he entered the house, trailing off as he saw his brother standing awkwardly inside the door to the living room, arms crossed over his chest.

 

“Did I miss curfew again?” he joked, leaning against the wall opposite.

 

Liam cleared his throat. “I … Killian, I just want to say, I owe you an apology. I didn’t realize how upset you really were, and it was petty of me to try to play a trick on you in your condition.”

 

Killian raised an eyebrow, biting back a grin. “Elsa make you say that?”

 

“Yes.” His brother sighed. “She said I was disrespectful and immature.”

 

“I knew I liked that girl,” Killian said. “Listen, I just. You gave up your whole life to come back here and take care of me, so the idea that I might have been moving in on your girlfriend — even unknowingly — was … devastating. I’d never want to hurt you like that.”

 

Liam cleared his throat again and stared hard at the floor. “Whatever I gave up, Killian, it doesn’t matter. Family always comes first. I’ve no regrets, not about that.”

 

Killian swallowed hard, nodding. He felt the same, but these were things they just didn’t talk about in the Jones household. “At any rate, I’m glad you found possibly the only woman in town who wouldn’t prefer your younger brother’s dashing good looks and charming personality to — well, you.”

 

Liam laughed, flipping him off. “By the way, yes, you _did_ miss curfew, and you’re grounded. Forever. I’ll call your girlfriend and tell her you’ll have to cancel every date from now on.”

 

“That’s fine, I’ll call _your_ girlfriend and tell her you’re being disrespectful and immature again,” Killian said, walking up the stairs, grinning the whole way.


End file.
